Term II: US Must Help Poor, Elderly, Obama Says

WASHINGTON (AP) — Declaring “our journey is not complete,” President Barack Obama took the oath of office for his second term before a crowd of hundreds of thousands Monday, urging the nation to set an unwavering course toward prosperity and freedom for all its citizens and protect the social safety net that has sheltered the poor, elderly and needy.

“Our country cannot succeed when a shrinking few do very well and a growing many barely make it,” Obama said in his relatively brief, 18-minute address. “We believe that America’s prosperity must rest upon the broad shoulders of a rising middle class,” he added, echoing his calls from the presidential campaign that catapulted him to re-election.

The president declared that a decade of war is ending, as is the economic recession that consumed much of his first term.

The inaugural fanfare spread across the capital Monday, including a traditional lunch with lawmakers on Capitol Hill. Before departing the Capitol, Obama paused in the Rotunda in front of a bust of Martin Luther King Jr., the slain civil rights leader whose birthday holiday coincided with the inaugural festivities.

From the Capitol, the president and first lady Michelle Obama climbed into the black armored limousine that ferried them past cheering crowds lining Pennsylvania Avenue for the inaugural parade. Surrounded by Secret Service agents, the Obamas stepped out of the limousine and walked the parade route for about eight minutes, holding hands and waving to the exuberant crowds.

Before diving into the afternoon celebrations, Obama previewed an ambitious second-term agenda, devoting several sentences in his address to the threat of global climate change and saying that failure to confront it “would betray our children and future generations.” Obama’s focus on climate change was notable given that he barely dealt with the issue in his first term.

In an era of looming budget cuts, he said the nation has a commitment to costly programs such as Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security. “These things do not sap our initiative, they strengthen us,” he said.

Sandwiched between the bruising presidential campaign and relentless fiscal fights, Monday’s inaugural celebrations marked a brief respite from the partisan gridlock that has consumed the past two years. Perhaps seeking a fresh start, Obama invited several lawmakers to the White House for coffee before his speech, including the Republican leaders with whom he has frequently been at odds.

Among then was the Senate’s top Republican, Mitch McConnell of Kentucky. In a statement following Obama’s swearing-in, McConnell said the president’s second term represents “a fresh start when it comes to dealing with the great challenges of our day.”

Looking ahead to those challenges, Obama implored Congress to find common ground over the next four years. And seeking to build on the public support that catapulted him to the White House twice, the president said the public has “the obligation to shape the debates of our time.”

“Not only with the votes we cast, but with the voices we lift in defense of our most ancient values and enduring ideals,” Obama said.

Moments earlier, Obama placed his hand on two Bibles — one used by King and the other by Abraham Lincoln — and recited the brief oath of office. Michelle Obama held the Bibles, one on top of the other, as daughters Malia and Sasha looked on.

Vice President Joe Biden was also sworn in for his second term as the nation’s second in command. Former Presidents Bill Clinton and Jimmy Carter, several Cabinet secretaries and dozens of lawmakers were on hand to bear witness to history.

Monday’s oaths were purely ceremonial. The Constitution stipulates that presidents begin their new terms at noon on Jan. 20, and in keeping with that requirement, Obama was sworn in Sunday in a small ceremony at the White House. Because inaugural celebrations are historically not held on Sundays, organizers pushed the public events to Monday.

Obama soaked in the history on a day full of traditions as old as the Republic. Gazing over the crowd before retreating into the Capitol, he said, “I want to take a look, one more time. I’m not going to see this again.”

After a stunning sunrise, the weather for the swearing-in and parade was chilly — upper 30s rising into the lower 40s. Overcast skies gave way to bright sunshine for the parade.

Once the celebrations subside, Obama will be confronted with an array of pressing priorities: an economy still struggling to fully a recover, the fiscal fights with a divided Congress, and new threats of terrorism in North Africa. The president has also pledged to tackle immigration reform and stricter gun laws in the wake of the school shootings in Newtown, Conn., — sweeping domestic reforms that will require help from reluctant lawmakers.

Obama is also facing fresh concerns about terrorism in North Africa. In the midst of the inaugural celebrations, a U.S. official said two more Americans died in Algeria, bringing the U.S. death toll from a four-day siege at a natural gas plant to three. Seven Americans survived, the official said.

The president did not offer any specific prescriptions for addressing the challenges ahead, though he is expected to offer more detail in his Feb. 12 State of the Union address.

Asserting “America’s possibilities are limitless,” he declared at the Capitol: “My fellow Americans, we are made for this moment, and we will seize it, so long as we seize it together.”

“We must make the hard choices to reduce the cost of health care and the size of our deficit,” he said. “But we reject the belief that America must choose between caring for the generation that built this country and investing in the generation that will build its future.”

Obama’s second inaugural lacked the electric enthusiasm of his first, when 1.8 million people crammed onto the National Mall to witness the swearing-in of the nation’s first black president. Far fewer people attended this year’s inauguration — officials estimated up to 700,000 people — but the crowd still stretched from the Capitol to the Washington Monument. And shortly before the president spoke, U.S. Park Police announced that the public viewing areas on the Mall were full.

Security was tight across Washington, with streets closed off for blocks around the White House and Capitol Hill. Military Humvees and city buses were being used to block intersections. Volunteers fanned out near the Mall to help direct the crowds.

David Richardson of Atlanta and his two young children were among the early-goers who headed to the Mall before sunrise.

“We wanted to see history, I think, and also for the children to witness that anything is possible through hard work,” Richardson said.

Wendy Davis of Rome, Ga., was one of thousands of inaugural attendees who packed Metro trains. Davis came four years ago as well but was among the many ticketholders who couldn’t get in then because of the massive crowds.

“I thought I was early last time, but I obviously wasn’t early enough,” she said.

By 8 a.m. thousands of people were also waiting in security lines that stretched a block to gain access to the spots along the parade route that were accessible to the general public without a special ticket.

The cold weather was easily tolerated by Marie-France Lemaine of Montreal, who received the trip to the inaugural as a birthday present from her husband. She headed up an Obama advocacy group in Quebec that cheered on the president from north of the border.

1. Barack Obama was born on August 4, 1961 in Honolulu, Hawaii.

2. His mother, Stanley Ann Dunham, was an American anthropologist, activist and social scientist born in Kansas in 1942. She passed away in 1995. (Photo: AP)

2 of 29

3. His father, Barack Obama, Sr. was from Kenya. His parents met while studying at the University of Hawaii and got married on Feb. 2, 1961 and baby Barack was born six months later. (Photo: AP)

3 of 29

4. His parents eventually separated and divorced when Barack was two. His father returned to Kenya and his mother married a man from Indonesia. They moved to Indonesia a year later. (Photo: AP)

4 of 29

5. At age 10, Barack was sent to Hawaii to live with his maternal grandparents. His mom and sister soon followed. (Photo: AP)

5 of 29

6. Barack attended the esteemed Punahou Academy where he excelled and graduated with academic honors in 1979. (Photo: AP)

6 of 29

7. He played basketball on one of the best high school teams in Hawaii. His nickname was "O'Bomber" because of his mad skills. (Photo: AP)

7 of 29

8. After high school, Obama studied at Occidental College in Los Angeles for two years. He then transferred to Columbia University in New York, graduating in 1983 with a degree in political science. (Photo: AP)

8 of 29

9. Obama moved to Chicago in 1985. There, he worked on the South Side as a community organizer for low-income residents in the Roseland and the Altgeld Gardens communities. (Photo: AP)

9 of 29

10. Barack visited relatives in Kenya, which included an emotional visit to the graves of his biological father and paternal grandfather. (Photo: AP)

10 of 29

11. Obama returned from Kenya with a sense of renewal, entering Harvard Law School in 1988.

11 of 29

12. The next year, he met Michelle Robinson, an associate at the Chicago law firm of Sidley Austin. She was assigned to be Obama's adviser during a summer internship at the firm, and not long after, the couple began dating.

12 of 29

13. Their first kiss took place outside of a Chicago shopping center—where a plaque featuring a photo of the couple kissing was installed more than two decades later, in August 2012. (Photo: AP)

13 of 29

14. In February 1990, Obama was elected the first African-American editor of the Harvard Law Review. He graduated from Harvard, magna cum laude, in 1991.

14 of 29

15. After law school, Obama returned to Chicago to practice as a civil rights lawyer, joining the firm of Miner, Barnhill & Galland. He also taught part time at the University of Chicago Law School, first as a lecturer and then as a professor—and helped organize voter registration drives during Bill Clinton's 1992 presidential campaign. (Photo: AP)

15 of 29

16. On October 3, 1992, he and Michelle were married. They moved to Kenwood, on Chicago's South Side. (Photo: AP)

16 of 29

17. Obama's advocacy work led him to run for a seat in the Illinois State Senate. He ran as a Democrat, and won election in 1996. During these years, Obama worked with both Democrats and Republicans to draft legislation on ethics, and expand health care services and early childhood education programs for the poor. (Photo: AP)

17 of 29

18. After around six years of marriage, Barack and Michelle welcomed daughter Malia born in 1998 and daughter Sasha born in 2001. (Photo: AP)

18 of 29

19. November 2 2004, the Obama family is covered in confetti after Obama delivered his acceptance speech. With his win, Barack Obama became only the third African-American elected to the U.S. Senate since the Reconstruction. (Photo: AP)

19 of 29

20. On November 4, 2008, Barack Obama defeated Republican presidential nominee John McCain, 52.9 percent to 45.7 percent, winning election as the 44th president of the United States—and the first African-American to hold this office. (Photo: AP)

20 of 29

21. 2008 newly elected President Barack Obama gave his acceptance speech at Grant Park in Chicago and the Obama family takes stage and waves to all his supporters. (Photo: AP)

21 of 29

22. President Barack Obama's inauguration took place on January 20, 2009. President Obama joined by Michelle, takes the oath of office from Chief Justice John Roberts to become the 44th president of the United States at the U.S.(Photo: AP)

22 of 29

23. President Barack Obama and his family and Vice President Joe Biden and his family celebrate their nominations as the confetti falls at the conclusion of the Democratic National Convention in Charlotte, N.C., on Thursday, Sept. 6, 2012. (AP Photo)

23 of 29

24. President Obama and Vice President Joe Biden ran for a second term against Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan. (Photo: AP)

24 of 29

25. The president rolled to a second term over Romney, winning more than 300 electoral votes. President Obama told supporters "the best is yet to come." (Photo: AP)

25 of 29

26. Barack got a little greyer after a few years in the White House.

26 of 29

27. Barack's official portrait for his second term as President of the United States of America.

27 of 29

28. Barack and Michelle walked off into the sunset after 8 years in the White House.

28 of 29

29. We miss you President Obama, but it seems you're happy to be back to private life.

29 of 29

Continue reading Term II: US Must Help Poor, Elderly, Obama Says

Happy Birthday, Barack Obama!

Barack H. Obama is the 44th President of the United States and the first African American President in American History. His birthday is August 4th. In celebration, here is his life in pictures.